Jason Castro Sings Hallelujah

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This just in:

Amar A Morir Premiere Night

Aaaahhh goose bumps. Amazing.


Ya, ya, I know. We're supposed to be writing about Michael. But come on, it's his brother. It's Hallelujah. It's Jason. ;-)

P.S.

We've been trying to find pics of Michael from the event. So far we haven't found any. But some will eventually turn up. No worries.

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Jason Castro To Perform At The Santa Barbara International Film Festiv

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A rumor suggests that Jason's family will be flying to California to watch his performance. And since Michael's MySpace status (from 16 hours ago) says he is "packing and then off to the airport", I suspect that he will be attending the Santa Barbara International Festival to support his brother.

So if you are anywhere near Santa Barbara, or if you live faaarrrr away, but has the means and the time, why not attend the Festival? Not only will you be able to watch Jason perform his FULL version of the lovely Hallelujah, you might just have the chance to see "the" Michael Castro up close and personal.

And wait, there's more!

The luminous Kate Winslet will be at the festival on the same day to receive the Montecito Award. The awarding ceremony will be in a different theater (Arlington), but hey, if you try hard enough, star sighting is not improbable.

The event which runs January 22 to February 1, 2009, will be honoring the great Clint Eastwood on the 29th. Kristin Scott Thomas, Penelope Cruz and comeback king Mickey Rourke, will also be receiving special awards.

Movie festivals like this are always fun and interesting. There are different programs and activities all day long and if you buy a special cinema pass, you can watch all the movies you like. Sometimes the package even includes access to the gala on the first day and the awards ceremony on the final night of the festival.

For more information on the festival schedule and the ticket/passes packages, here's the link to their website : SBIFF

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Michael Castro Makes A Splash

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There's a lot of buzz about our boy. Here's another article; it's from the NY Daily:

He's no bikini-girl, but 'American Idol' star Jason Castro's brother Michael has family ties

Well, he's no bikini-girl Katrina Darrell, but Michael Castro still made a splash Wednesday night on "American Idol" for his family ties: the hot pink-haired singer is the brother of last season's sweet-voiced crooner Jason Castro.

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It's a good read. Here's the link.

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Screen cap--- Notice the poll?

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"Pink-Haired" Michael Advances

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An article from USMagazine.

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On Wednesday's American Idol, wannabe singers in Kansas City turned out -- including Michael Castro, the pink-haired brother of last year's finalist Jason Castro.

Michael, 20, impressed the judges with his performance of Gavin DeGraw's "In Love With A Girl."

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Read the full article here.

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Jason and Michael Castro in the LA Times

It's more about Jason, but Michael's in it too!

"One star shines bright in Kansas City "

by Richard Rushfield:

The show's most intriguing moment came, however, in a guest cameo -- the return of Season Seven giant Jason Castro to the "Idol" auditions in support of his charismatic younger brother, Michael.

Seeing Jason, an actual, certified Idol walk among the cringing masses in the waiting lounge was such a contrast, it was like seeing a god come down from Mt. Olympus and walk among mere mortals.  The fascinating part is that just one year ago, Jason sat among them, without any special aura or grandeur to his presence. So innocuous was Jason that he was not even shown until the end of Hollywood Week.

Such is the power of "American Idol" that a year later, having worked his way through the "Idol" journey, having stood night after night before millions, he appears with a larger-than-life quality.

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You can read the rest of the article HERE. And while you're there, how about leaving some good words for our boy. Mmmkay?

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Quotes From Michael's Audition

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* Exchange between new judge Kara and our boy:

Kara:  “You have this, ‘I have a secret’ vibe”

Michael: “Maybe I don’t even know it.”

(he is a stud. that is all.)

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*Michael on big bro Jason

Michael: “He’s like, more girly, and I’m more, like, not girly,”

(this is the part where my jaw dropped and then after I had finally picked it up from the floor, all I called say was a big WTH!!! ) =p

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*And my favorite quote of the night:

Jason: “By girly you mean I have emotions and express them well?  Some people call that an artist.”

(and then a collective shriek was heard across Castro land.)

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And by the way, contrary to American Idol's constant claim, Jason Castro is in fact a fun and interesting interviewee. This jab at Jason's interview skills is getting tired. The only clip they ever have of him bungling up an interview  is that pre-performance clip from the Top 20 round. Yes, from week 2. It's that old.

Jason consistently gave honest, polite, down to earth and sincere interviews. His exit interview on Idol Extra was entertaining and truthful and all his radio interviews after AI were fun and revealing.

But I digress.  On the Michael : It will truly be interesting to watch how far Michael will go on his AI journey. I also wonder whether the show is going to treat him more humanely and spare him the savage beating his beautiful soul of a brother got.

To Michael's credit, our guy is a Cage fighter. I'm not saying he's going to get all violent, but I really don't think he's going to take crap from anyone. Not even Simon.

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Michael Castro Audition Video

I can't get it to load here. Grrrr.

But here's a link to it.

Michael Castro - Audition, Kansas City


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Side note:

I noticed that Ryan Seacrest referred to Jason as last year's "fourth runner-up".  WTH?

It was either Ryan's mistake or the writer's. They demoted the guy one rank down.

Just to be clear to everyone,  Jason Castro was the 4th placer last season. He finished in the Top 4 and hence should be called  the "third runner-up".

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Michael's Audition

I finally made it here.

I've been trying to load his audition video but it's taking such a freakin' long time.

While it's uploading I thought I'd drop by and say........

(Warning Spoiler ahead)